Angryman's Houserules [Archive] - Wizards Community

Angryman's Houserules [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
angryman
09-16-07, 12:10 AM I'm running a homebrew world that all of us has contributed to (which is fun) and since it's a "fresh start" we've decided to negotiate our houserules. Here's what we're using, and it works well. No problems so far.

Using Ultimate Paladin & Fighter

A fair boost to both classes. They need it.

Using PhB2 variant Druid

They feel less dominating now, though it's low levels at the moment. :)

Sorcerer is improved

Free Eschew Materials at level 1, 4 skills/level, add Intimidate & UMD as class skills. Debating also bonus feats as per wizard, haven't decided yet.

No XP...kind of

A big one. PCs gain 1/4 of a level every full session (ie, if they're buying crap for the entire session, they get ni XP) so obviously gain a level every 4 sessions. I find this works beautifully because a) the PCs aren't XP hungry kill-monkeys anymore and b) I don't have to stress about XP balanced encounters.

Feats

* Any light weapon is automatically finesseable as per Weapon Finesse.

Spells

Polymorph range of spells & Teleport spells, or spells that emulate those effects do not exist. Polymoprh has been banned due to obvious abusability, Teleport because I like making PCs travel overland on ships, etc.

Can only automatically start with core 3.5 PhB spells, must research for new ones (such as from splatbook)s. Divine casters must pray and give tithes/sacrifices/whatever equal to the cost of a wizard's research. Why? Because every splatbook makes divine casters more powerful by expanding their spell lists. :(
Tequila_Sunrise
09-16-07, 01:21 PM Using Ultimate Paladin & Fighter
Not familiar with these, but I'm sure they're super nifty.

Using PhB2 variant Druid
Great.

Sorcerer is improved

Free Eschew Materials at level 1, 4 skills/level, add Intimidate & UMD as class skills. Debating also bonus feats as per wizard, haven't decided yet.
I do not recommend bonus feats. Maybe give them the other Cha-related skills instead.

No XP...kind of

A big one. PCs gain 1/4 of a level every full session (ie, if they're buying crap for the entire session, they get ni XP) so obviously gain a level every 4 sessions. I find this works beautifully because a) the PCs aren't XP hungry kill-monkeys anymore and b) I don't have to stress about XP balanced encounters.
This is pretty much what I do when I DM, and as you say it works great!

Feats

* Any light weapon is automatically finesseable as per Weapon Finesse.
Rapier too?

Spells

Polymorph range of spells & Teleport spells, or spells that emulate those effects do not exist. Polymoprh has been banned due to obvious abusability, Teleport because I like making PCs travel overland on ships, etc.
I've never had a problem with polymorph, but apparently a lot of DMs do, so more power to ya for just saying NO.

Can only automatically start with core 3.5 PhB spells, must research for new ones (such as from splatbook)s. Divine casters must pray and give tithes/sacrifices/whatever equal to the cost of a wizard's research. Why? Because every splatbook makes divine casters more powerful by expanding their spell lists. :(
I'd rather just limit divine casters to X spells per spell level, 'cause published spells are random, but whatever.
angryman
09-17-07, 02:21 AM Not familiar with these, but I'm sure they're super nifty.

I do not recommend Sorcerer bonus feats. Maybe give them the other Cha-related skills instead.

I'm thinking of doing that.

This is pretty much what I do when I DM, and as you say it works great!

And it also means that they'll often follow what's interesting/appropriate to their character over killing stuff.

Any light weapon is automatically finesseable as per Weapon Finesse.

Rapier too?

Yep. Any weapon that can reasonable be considered 'light', which doesn't always correspond to the PhB.

I've never had a problem with polymorph, but apparently a lot of DMs do, so more power to ya for just saying NO.

It's cheesy, just like Wild Shape. That's why I changed them both.

[quoteI'd rather just limit divine casters to X spells per spell level, 'cause published spells are random, but whatever.[/quote]

I just don't want divine casters getting a list of thousands of spells, it really makes them even better.
White_Whale
09-17-07, 07:15 AM Using Ultimate Paladin & Fighter

A fair boost to both classes. They need it.

Using PhB2 variant Druid

They feel less dominating now, though it's low levels at the moment. :)

I don't know these, but they sound reasonable.

Sorcerer is improved

Free Eschew Materials at level 1, 4 skills/level, add Intimidate & UMD as class skills. Debating also bonus feats as per wizard, haven't decided yet.

I like :)

No XP...kind of

A big one. PCs gain 1/4 of a level every full session (ie, if they're buying crap for the entire session, they get ni XP) so obviously gain a level every 4 sessions. I find this works beautifully because a) the PCs aren't XP hungry kill-monkeys anymore and b) I don't have to stress about XP balanced encounters.
Not my style. I think there should be a risk -> reward system.

Feats

* Any light weapon is automatically finesseable as per Weapon Finesse.
Don't see any problems.

Spells

Polymorph range of spells & Teleport spells, or spells that emulate those effects do not exist. Polymoprh has been banned due to obvious abusability, Teleport because I like making PCs travel overland on ships, etc.
Polymorph ban - fine with me :)
Teleport ban - even better :cool: I hate the impact of teleport-type spells

Can only automatically start with core 3.5 PhB spells, must research for new ones (such as from splatbook)s. Divine casters must pray and give tithes/sacrifices/whatever equal to the cost of a wizard's research. Why? Because every splatbook makes divine casters more powerful by expanding their spell lists. :(
Fair. I would also reserve my right to outright ban some non-core spells on sight (players should ask for permission before using).

All in all I applaud your efforts. Reasonable house rules without totally rewriting mechanics which too many do. I would love to play in your game :D
The_Hedgewizard
09-17-07, 10:07 AM I'd rather just limit divine casters to X spells per spell level, 'cause published spells are random, but whatever.

What I did, as I mentioned in another thread, is have them know 10 - spell level + base Wisdom bonus per level spells. It works about to about the same number they'd get from core. Depending on how strong you want them to be you can count domains and spontaneous castable spells toward this or not (I didn't).

Free Eschew Materials at level 1, 4 skills/level, add Intimidate & UMD as class skills. Debating also bonus feats as per wizard, haven't decided yet.

If you do add bonus feats, definitely put them back to 2 skill points and maybe drop UMD too. That's my opinion at least. What I did to improve the sorcerer was apply the cleric system of spells per level as above but as 1/2 the number. Basically gives them a couple of extra spells each level, but over the course of different levels, not as soon as they gain a new one.
angryman
09-18-07, 02:50 AM White_Whale

I agree with a "risk-reward" system, however the reward isn't XP in my game. It could be loot, a resolved plot, special training, or just the satisfaction of a job well done.

I don't like XP because it's often arbitrary and doesn't make sense, often forcing PCs to act in an odd way, ie, they say,

"We shouldn't go to the wizard's tower yet. Let's go murder some people to become more powerful."

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
angryman 09-16-07, 12:10 AM	I'm running a homebrew world that all of us has contributed to (which is fun) and since it's a "fresh start" we've decided to negotiate our houserules. Here's what we're using, and it works well. No problems so far. Using Ultimate Paladin & Fighter A fair boost to both classes. They need it. Using PhB2 variant Druid They feel less dominating now, though it's low levels at the moment. :) Sorcerer is improved Free Eschew Materials at level 1, 4 skills/level, add Intimidate & UMD as class skills. Debating also bonus feats as per wizard, haven't decided yet. No XP...kind of A big one. PCs gain 1/4 of a level every full session (ie, if they're buying crap for the entire session, they get ni XP) so obviously gain a level every 4 sessions. I find this works beautifully because a) the PCs aren't XP hungry kill-monkeys anymore and b) I don't have to stress about XP balanced encounters. Feats * Any light weapon is automatically finesseable as per Weapon Finesse. Spells Polymorph range of spells & Teleport spells, or spells that emulate those effects do not exist. Polymoprh has been banned due to obvious abusability, Teleport because I like making PCs travel overland on ships, etc. Can only automatically start with core 3.5 PhB spells, must research for new ones (such as from splatbook)s. Divine casters must pray and give tithes/sacrifices/whatever equal to the cost of a wizard's research. Why? Because every splatbook makes divine casters more powerful by expanding their spell lists. :(
Tequila_Sunrise 09-16-07, 01:21 PM	Using Ultimate Paladin & Fighter Not familiar with these, but I'm sure they're super nifty. Using PhB2 variant Druid Great. Sorcerer is improved Free Eschew Materials at level 1, 4 skills/level, add Intimidate & UMD as class skills. Debating also bonus feats as per wizard, haven't decided yet. I do not recommend bonus feats. Maybe give them the other Cha-related skills instead. No XP...kind of A big one. PCs gain 1/4 of a level every full session (ie, if they're buying crap for the entire session, they get ni XP) so obviously gain a level every 4 sessions. I find this works beautifully because a) the PCs aren't XP hungry kill-monkeys anymore and b) I don't have to stress about XP balanced encounters. This is pretty much what I do when I DM, and as you say it works great! Feats * Any light weapon is automatically finesseable as per Weapon Finesse. Rapier too? Spells Polymorph range of spells & Teleport spells, or spells that emulate those effects do not exist. Polymoprh has been banned due to obvious abusability, Teleport because I like making PCs travel overland on ships, etc. I've never had a problem with polymorph, but apparently a lot of DMs do, so more power to ya for just saying NO. Can only automatically start with core 3.5 PhB spells, must research for new ones (such as from splatbook)s. Divine casters must pray and give tithes/sacrifices/whatever equal to the cost of a wizard's research. Why? Because every splatbook makes divine casters more powerful by expanding their spell lists. :( I'd rather just limit divine casters to X spells per spell level, 'cause published spells are random, but whatever.
angryman 09-17-07, 02:21 AM	Not familiar with these, but I'm sure they're super nifty. I do not recommend Sorcerer bonus feats. Maybe give them the other Cha-related skills instead. I'm thinking of doing that. This is pretty much what I do when I DM, and as you say it works great! And it also means that they'll often follow what's interesting/appropriate to their character over killing stuff. Any light weapon is automatically finesseable as per Weapon Finesse. Rapier too? Yep. Any weapon that can reasonable be considered 'light', which doesn't always correspond to the PhB. I've never had a problem with polymorph, but apparently a lot of DMs do, so more power to ya for just saying NO. It's cheesy, just like Wild Shape. That's why I changed them both. [quoteI'd rather just limit divine casters to X spells per spell level, 'cause published spells are random, but whatever.[/quote] I just don't want divine casters getting a list of thousands of spells, it really makes them even better.
White_Whale 09-17-07, 07:15 AM	Using Ultimate Paladin & Fighter A fair boost to both classes. They need it. Using PhB2 variant Druid They feel less dominating now, though it's low levels at the moment. :) I don't know these, but they sound reasonable. Sorcerer is improved Free Eschew Materials at level 1, 4 skills/level, add Intimidate & UMD as class skills. Debating also bonus feats as per wizard, haven't decided yet. I like :) No XP...kind of A big one. PCs gain 1/4 of a level every full session (ie, if they're buying crap for the entire session, they get ni XP) so obviously gain a level every 4 sessions. I find this works beautifully because a) the PCs aren't XP hungry kill-monkeys anymore and b) I don't have to stress about XP balanced encounters. Not my style. I think there should be a risk -> reward system. Feats * Any light weapon is automatically finesseable as per Weapon Finesse. Don't see any problems. Spells Polymorph range of spells & Teleport spells, or spells that emulate those effects do not exist. Polymoprh has been banned due to obvious abusability, Teleport because I like making PCs travel overland on ships, etc. Polymorph ban - fine with me :) Teleport ban - even better :cool: I hate the impact of teleport-type spells Can only automatically start with core 3.5 PhB spells, must research for new ones (such as from splatbook)s. Divine casters must pray and give tithes/sacrifices/whatever equal to the cost of a wizard's research. Why? Because every splatbook makes divine casters more powerful by expanding their spell lists. :( Fair. I would also reserve my right to outright ban some non-core spells on sight (players should ask for permission before using). All in all I applaud your efforts. Reasonable house rules without totally rewriting mechanics which too many do. I would love to play in your game :D
The_Hedgewizard 09-17-07, 10:07 AM	I'd rather just limit divine casters to X spells per spell level, 'cause published spells are random, but whatever. What I did, as I mentioned in another thread, is have them know 10 - spell level + base Wisdom bonus per level spells. It works about to about the same number they'd get from core. Depending on how strong you want them to be you can count domains and spontaneous castable spells toward this or not (I didn't). Free Eschew Materials at level 1, 4 skills/level, add Intimidate & UMD as class skills. Debating also bonus feats as per wizard, haven't decided yet. If you do add bonus feats, definitely put them back to 2 skill points and maybe drop UMD too. That's my opinion at least. What I did to improve the sorcerer was apply the cleric system of spells per level as above but as 1/2 the number. Basically gives them a couple of extra spells each level, but over the course of different levels, not as soon as they gain a new one.
angryman 09-18-07, 02:50 AM	White_Whale I agree with a "risk-reward" system, however the reward isn't XP in my game. It could be loot, a resolved plot, special training, or just the satisfaction of a job well done. I don't like XP because it's often arbitrary and doesn't make sense, often forcing PCs to act in an odd way, ie, they say, "We shouldn't go to the wizard's tower yet. Let's go murder some people to become more powerful."